07.01.2009 14:29
Visiting the children in hospital
Míriam Nadal
Players, coaches and directors have completed the festive celebrations by paying a visit to local hospitals to see the children as part of a campaign of the club’s Fundación entitled “A present for a dream”.
In what has become a tradition at this time of year, Barça went to hospitals in the city and the
surrounding areas to see the kids, Visiting Vall d’Hebron were president Joan Laporta, Víctor
Valdés, Dani Alves, Martín Cáceres, Bojan, assistant coach Tito Vilnanova and vice-president Joan
Boix. They met children in the nephrology, oncology and infectious illness wards. The futsal
players Fernandao and Saad also visited.
The Hospital de Sant Joan Déu saw coach Josep Guardiola accompanied by Rafa
Márquez, Thierry Henry, Éric Abidal, Carles Puyol and Aliaksandr Hleb. The vice-president Alfons
Godall, the director of the Fundación, Marta Segú, and the Barça Mobicat coach Marc Carmona all
went too.
Where they all went
Lionel Messi and Gerard Piqué were at the Hospital de Nens de Barcelona, while Samuel
Eto’o, Andrés Iniesta, Yaya Touré, Seydou Keita and Juan Carlos Unzué all went to Sant Pau,
Sylvinho, Albert Jorquera and Pedro were in the Hospital del mar, Eidur Gudjohnsen and José Manuel
Pinto went to the Hospital de Barcelona and Xavi, Sergio Busquets and Víctor Sánchez were in the
Hospital Trias and Pujol de Badalona. In all the hospitals the board and players from other
sections were also present.
Bojan and Rafa Márquez explained why they enjoy the visits: “For us
it is great to be able to do something so simple that means so much to the children in hospital and
their families,” Bojan told Barça TV and ww.fcbarcelona.cat. “It is very
important,” Márquez continued. “We can bring a bit of happiness to the children that
have had to spend the festivities in hospital which is not good. The visit cheers them up.”